In just the last five years alone, the Ross Feller Casey law firm in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has recovered a remarkable $1 billion on behalf of its individual clients. That figure includes numerous multimillion-dollar recoveries by our Philadelphia whistleblower attorneys for those who have blown the whistle on fraud.
Ross Feller Casey is now actively investigating potential whistleblower lawsuits in Philadelphia, PA, and across the nation involving the federal government’s $2 trillion CARES Act, intended to help small businesses cope with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whistleblower qui tam cases could stem from fraud related to the fiscal relief effort, including the Paycheck Protection Program. Some examples of fraud include a company padding employment or payroll figures to obtain more money from the government, banks approving PPP loans using misleading or unverified information, and companies selling substandard or defective virus-related products to the government, such as personal protection equipment.
Those in the position to blow the whistle on fraud hold various positions within companies but likely will serve as bookkeepers, outside accountants, bank loan officers or underwriters, and office managers. If you find yourself in one of these positions and want to report fraudulent actions, a Ross Feller Casey whistleblower attorney in Philadelphia, PA, can help.
According to U.S. Justice Department figures, the government recovered more than $2.2 billion in settlements and judgments in the fiscal year 2020, with $309 million being awarded to individual whistleblowers who first reported the alleged fraud.
Whistleblower claims have unique complexities and are often difficult to prosecute. That is why hiring the right whistleblower lawyer who has experience in whistleblower law is so vitally important.
Ross Feller Casey has several dedicated Whistleblower lawyers in Philadelphia, PA, led by Brian J. McCormick, Jr.
McCormick has assisted the U.S. government in the successful prosecution of several landmark whistleblower actions, including representing individuals in four of the largest whistleblower qui tam settlements in U.S. history:
Most recently, in December 2022, BioTelemetry, Inc., a Philadelphia-area medical device maker, agreed to pay nearly $45 million to settle claims it defrauded U.S. taxpayers by outsourcing remote heart monitoring services to workers in India who were not properly trained. The case against BioTelemetry, now a Royal Philips company, was initiated by a whistleblower lawsuit that McCormick brought on behalf of former company employees.
In May 2021, a case filed by Philadelphia whistleblower lawyer McCormick led to a civil settlement in which Incyte Corporation paid $12.6 million to resolve federal allegations that it operated a kickback scheme involving its cancer drug Jakafi (ruxolitinib).
In 2019, McCormick helped the U.S. government and the state of California recover $6.6 million from a pharmaceutical company involved in a scheme in which it provided kickbacks to induce doctors to buy its dermatological products. The case involved Almirall, LLC, formerly known as Aqua Pharmaceuticals, of Pennsylvania. It was prompted by a former employee, represented by McCormick, who blew the whistle on the fraud.
In June 2017, Ross Feller Casey announced a settlement in which the owners of the Atlantic Spine & Joint Institute, a pain clinic with offices in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, agreed to pay $1.78 million to settle an allegation that it billed Medicare for procedures that were not medically necessary or were not actually performed.
Ross Feller Casey also helped federal lawyers secure a $6.07 million settlement with medical device companies EBI, LLC, of New Jersey, and Biomet, Inc., of Indiana, that resolved allegations that they used illegal kickbacks to induce doctors to purchase their bone growth stimulators. The 2014 case was prompted by a former company employee who McCormick represented.
A whistleblower lawsuit can take many forms and touch many industries, which is why it is critical to have the formal legal advice of an experienced whistleblower lawyer. Some notable recent cases involved:
The statute of limitations for whistleblowers to take action under the qui tam provision of the False Claims Act is as follows:
There may be exceptions to the above, so it’s crucial to contact an experienced whistleblower attorney to determine if you can proceed with filing a qui tam lawsuit.
Suppose you or someone you know has information about fraud involving federal funds or against the U.S., or a state or local government, past or present. In that case, the time to contact a Philadelphia whistleblower lawyer is now.
With a whistleblower lawyer in your corner, you can do the right thing and report fraudulent activities while ensuring that you are protected from retaliation from your employer as much as possible. Let a whistleblower attorney from Ross Feller Casey help you through the process.
Your ability to file a successful whistleblower action could be limited under what is known as the “first to file” rule, which is designed to encourage the prompt reporting of fraud. This rule may require that only the first person — no matter whether they are the most qualified or most knowledgeable about the fraud — is entitled to the government award in a given case. This is where qui tam actions are different than all other personal injury cases.
The attorneys at Ross Feller Casey understand the personal and professional risks you are taking to blow the whistle and expose fraud against the government. We have the expertise in Pennsylvania whistleblower law, federal laws, and the conscientious employee protection act to fight for and protect your rights through the entire whistleblower legal process.
As with all of its cases, Ross Feller Casey handles whistleblower actions on a contingency basis, meaning there will never be a cost to you unless there is a financial recovery in your case.
Contact our office today for your free consultation with an experienced whistleblower attorney.